BNSF marks start of Northstar commuter service in Twin Cities Area

Northstar Commuter service in
the Twin Cities area became a reality Nov. 16, with the first paying customers
for the new rail line. Northstar is BNSF's first new BNSF-employee-operated
commuter service in nine years and has been more than 10 years in the planning
and execution stage, the company newsletter reports.

D.J. Mitchell, assistant
vice president, Passenger Operations, said the new commuter service is expected
to make a significant difference in traffic congestion in the northwest Minneapolis
metropolitan area.

"This has been a
long-term effort involving the railroad, the state of Minnesota, the Northstar
counties and communities," Mitchell said. "Everyone in Minnesota
involved in this has done a very good job in setting this up to have a
tremendous impact. They really thought it through and have coordinated their
planning with all aspects of public transportation -- bus and light rail."

The new service will run
six trains a day roundtrip. Employees began training for the commuter service
several months ago and made practice "runs" in preparation for
on-time performance.

The new commuter rail will
run from downtown Minneapolis, Minn., through Fridley, Coon Rapids/Riverdale,
Anoka, Elk River to Big Lake. An extension of the service to St. Cloud is also
being studied. Mitchell said the commuter service connects in downtown
Minneapolis with the existing Hiawatha light-rail service that goes to Mall of
America and the airport.

"As in Seattle, the
downtown station is built near the new stadium in Minneapolis," Mitchell
said. That location will help provide light-rail service for some sports
events.

BNSF employees provide
dispatching, track maintenance and train operations. "We're very proud of
our people who have been training for this and who have worked for several
years to make the improvements to track and signals, making this service
possible," he said.

BNSF employees were also
involved in the construction of the rail itself. Chris Pickard, project
engineer, coordinated the construction effort. An estimated 200 BNSF employees
-- mostly track and signal -- contributed to the construction effort.
Transportation employees worked hard to provide generous work windows.
Employees upgraded 42 miles of track in preparation for the commuter service.
The work included new crossovers, turnouts, high-speed switches and main track,
as well as an upgraded signal system.